Delaware County, PA Personal Injury Lawyer

Accidents can be a huge setback in our lives. This setback can hurt your health, your finances, and probably have an impact on the rest of your life. It’s especially disturbing when someone else causes the accident. Since injuries are preventable for the most part, no one should carry the weight of the losses alone. If there was a time when reaching out for help was important, this is it.  With the right legal representation at this trying time, you may not have to spend anything unless recovery is obtained and be able to receive compensation that can help you cope with the lasting impact of losses suffered. When accidents happen to a resident of Delaware County, experienced help is available. Whether you suffered an accident visiting a historical site or shopping in Booths Corner or due to the negligence of a Main Line Health doctor or driving through Baltimore Pike, experienced Delaware County attorneys of Jacobs and Fishman can help you through the process of recovering compensation for your losses.  We offer private consultations free of charge and are known for our unwavering commitment to our clients.

Most experienced attorneys in Pennsylvania can agree that having knowledge of the locality can be very helpful in handling negligence lawsuits—experience can range from knowing the local court rules to understanding the traffic rules and regulations. This local experience can make a difference in the outcome of the case. If you or someone you know has suffered a personal injury in Delaware County, you should contact the dedicated team of attorneys of Jacobs and Fishman. To schedule a consultation, call us at (610) 941-4250.

Overview of Negligence Lawsuits

At the point in which you file a lawsuit, you will be considered a “plaintiff.” Plaintiff is the legal term used to refer to the person who initiates a civil lawsuit. The party you sue is called “defendant.” In order to prove negligence, lawyers are required to present evidence that can substantiate an inference or conclusion that defendants’ actions were not prudent or failed to meet a known “standard of care.” The standard of care is the legal term used to refer to conduct that is expected. For example, doctors are required to meet the standard of care of all patients. Also, drivers have to meet the standard of care other drivers are expected to maintain.

Most negligence lawsuits involve mixed questions of fact and law. For example, when someone falls off a bench, legal responsibility is not readily apparent. There are all kinds of circumstances that can cause a person to fall off a bench. However, when the position of the bench is in uneven ground, failing to place it in even ground is considered “imprudent” because it creates risks that can cause a person to fall. Inasmuch as negligence law may seem complex, it is always driven by basic care or reasonableness concepts. Danger can be posed by someone’s inattentiveness or carelessness in multiple ways, even some that are not readily apparent. These issues can be sorted out when you talk to an experienced personal injury attorney.

Many negligence cases evolve to the point the case has to be presented to a jury. When the case goes to a jury, it is important to be prepared to explain the social perspectives regarding the ways in which the accident could have been prevented. Experienced personal injury attorneys understand how events and sequences of occurrences can be central for a determination of legal responsibility.

Establishing Negligence in a Pennsylvania Personal Injury Claim

The level of evidence needed to establish negligence is always an area where strong lawyering skills are helpful. Evidence is the legal term used to refer to anything relevant or helpful in explaining what happened. There are usually “questions of fact” as well as “rules of law.” The questions of fact are those issues that are under dispute—whether someone ran a red light or was texting and driving. The rules of law are those concepts of law applied to every similar case.

One example that is often seen in negligence cases is the rules of law regarding “causation.” While the cause of an accident is a question of fact, there are rules of law governing the concept of causation, and there are times when this becomes a convoluted part of a case. There are two important rules of causation:

• The legal concept of “but-for” causation, which essentially means “had it not been for.” One factor is the central element causing the injury.
• The legal theory of “substantial factor” causation, which means that an injury would not have occurred without that element.

Many of the personal injury cases we handle will depend on understanding how to apply the rules of law of causation to different facts. While sufficiency of evidence and causation tend to be separate legal issues, as you look for legal representation, the experience of an attorney in distinguishing and understanding these elements can make a difference in the outcome of the case.  Even if you knew someone else is responsible for your accidents, there are many situations when either the standard of law is high or when evidence is difficult to obtain or convoluted. Skilled attorneys handle competing arguments of causation and understand the level of evidence needed throughout the legal representation.

Contributory Negligence

If you are injured in Pennsylvania, you may be able to recover from injuries despite having some degree of responsibility that contributed to causing the accident. This rule is applied as long as your level of responsibility doesn’t surpass 49% of the blame. You may want to talk to an attorney if this is your concern. Skilled personal injury attorneys know how these percentages are calculated and will also recruit experts who can help in making this determination.

Delaware County, Pennsylvania Personal Injury Lawyers Offering Free Consultations.

An experienced personal injury attorney can help you navigate through the process of filing a personal injury lawsuit. If you or someone you know has been injured in Delaware County, call (610) 941-4250 to schedule a free consultation.